Pastor Caroline - Sunday November 21, 2021 - Salvation is for All

Pastor Caroline - Wednesday November 17, 2021 - If God is For Us

 

If God is For Us

 

Romans Chapter 8 verse 31 from the Good News Bible reads:

(31) In view of all of this, what can we say? If God is for us, who can be against us?

 

 In our world today where separation seems to be so prevalent one wonders how do we stay connected? And I’m not talking about phones here, I’m talking about people staying connected to one another. I look around and I see marriages that started out “in love” and fall part because someone “fell out of love”. Years together building a home and family and suddenly one walks away – to start a new life.

 

In marriage God intends us to work together, loving and respecting one another, and to bring children into the marriage. These children are our biological children and / or adopted into the family. We as parents are to provide love, shelter, food, guidance and direction to the lives we are entrusted with. We are to bring the children up in the faith. Let them see Jesus as our Father in heaven and assure them we are part of His family. We belong to the family of God when we accept Jesus as lord and Saviour.

 

It touches my heart when I meet people who have been together for years and years, still in love, and enjoying their children and their children’s children. Sometimes when the years allow, even their great- great grandchildren. In this family I can see God as the Father of them all because the parents had a relationship with Jesus and passed it on to their children who passed it on and so forth,  growing 3, 4 maybe even 5 generations of family who functioned as God intended.

 

Even when families do not function as God plans, and separation happens, we remind ourselves that those who are in the body of Christ, living as God directs; will always be part of the family of God. We have a church family, brothers and sisters in Christ and I’ve often heard it said, so-and-so was my spiritual mom or dad. So if for any reason your biological family became separated please know that God looks beyond that and welcomes you to a family that is bound together in the love of Jesus. Jesus is God, and when God is for us who can be against us? Give your heart to Jesus asking Him to be your Lord and Saviour, become adopted into His family, be nurtured by His word, and put your faith and trust in Him alone and you will always be family, here on earth and in eternal life.

 

So if you meet someone today who has become separated from the earthly family please assure them that in the family of God they will be connected. Connected to a Father who loves them so much He sent His son to die for them. A Father who loves all of us enough to forgive all our sins and give us love and direction throughout our lives here on earth when we study His word and live our life by it. When we make and keep a covenant with the Lord nothing will separate us from His love.

Romans chapter 8 verses 31 to 39 from the Good News Bible assures us of this as we read:

(31) In view of all this, what can we say? If God is for us, who can be against us? (32) Certainly not God, who did not even keep back his own son, but offered him for us all! He gave us his son – will he not also freely give us all things? (33)Who will accuse God’s chosen people? God himself declares them not guilty! (34) Who, then, will condemn them? Not Christ Jesus, who died, or rather, who was raised to life and is at the right hand of God, pleading with him for us! (35) Who, then, can separate us from the love of Christ? Can trouble do it, or hardship or persecution or hunger or poverty or danger or death? (36)As the Scripture says,

“For your sake we are in danger of death at all times; we are treated like sheep that are going to be slaughtered.”

(37)No, in all these things we have complete victory through him who loved us! (38) For I am certain that nothing can separate us from his love: neither death nor life, neither angels nor other heavenly rulers or powers, neither the present nor the future, (39) neither the world above nor the world below – there is nothing in all creation that will ever be able to separate us from the love of God which is ours through Jesus Christ our Lord.

This is a power word from the Lord.

 

Today, and every day, I thank God that He is above all and no matter what takes place in this world He transcends this world. Thank you Lord for your promise of eternal life and giving us the knowledge of Your word. How comforting it is and what a blessing to know,

If God is for us who can be against us?

We are in His hands.

Dr. Barclay's Bible Study - The Book of Judges Part 10

Dr. Barclay with Something to Think About - THE TABLETS

 THE TABLETS

Clement of Alexandria (150-215 AD) is reported to have said: “The sacred text (Bible) has more than one meaning. The literal sense ought not to be set aside. But…beyond the literal sense of the text there are other meanings.”* This is because Scripture is written allegorically.

One such place this appears to be so is in the relating of the Ten Commandments and the details commented upon in Scripture. In Exodus 24, the Lord said to Moses, “…Come up to Me on the mountain…and I will give you tablets of stone, and the law and commandments which I have written…” (Exodus 24:12). Moses was there 40 days and nights before coming down again with the two tablets, and by that time the people had already persuaded Arron to make a golden calf to be worshiped. So as Moses descended and saw this He became angry and the tablets which “…were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God engraved on the tablets…”(Exodus 32:16), “…he cast the tablets out of his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain” (Exodus 32:19). And under God’s direction, Moses gathered the sons of Levi to himself and “…the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses. And about three thousand men of the people fell that day”(Exodus 32:28).

So the Tablets were broken and many died because of the actions of the Israelites that day. But God called Moses back to the mountain a second time. He told Moses to “…cut two tablets of stone like the first ones and I will write on these tablets the words that were on the first tablets which you broke” (Exodus 34:1). Moses did what God told him and was on the mountain 40 more days after which he descended with the new tablets and he himself was a changed man. “…when Moses came down from Mount Sinai…the skin of his face shone, and they (the Israelites) were afraid to come near him” (Exodus 34:29-30).

This briefly is the event of the giving of the Ten Commandments. So where’s the allegorical part? Well, Christ himself said: “…You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbour as yourself” (Luke 10:27). On one of the tablets of Moses was written the Laws of loving God and on the other were written the laws of man loving each other.

The two tablets broken due to the sins of the Israelites, and their lack of belief, were the same as Christ being broken (crucified), dying for the sin of the world. And as God gave Moses a second chance but told him to cut out the tablets himself this time, so do we all have second (and more) chances and we are told to “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12). Furthermore, when Moses broke the first set if tablets, fighting broke out “…and about three thousand men of the people died that day”(Exodus 32:28). Acts 2 states that “…those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them”(Acts 2:41).

Jewish tradition states that the words on the first tablets were removed back to heaven after 40 days. Christ returned to heaven 40 days after the crucifixion. Moses was transformed after his second meeting with God; all who believe will be transformed after the Second Coming of Christ. And at that time, just as the second set of tablets were kept whole, so will Jesus remain unscathed as He returns as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

In addition, when God appeared to Moses on the Mount, “…there were thunderings and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mountain, and the sound of the trumpet was very loud; so that all the people who were in the camp trembled” (Exodus 19:16). This was the same God that the people complained against and criticized during the trek in the desert up to that time. In the same vein, Revelation states that “ there was a great earthquake…and the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains”(Revelations 6:12,15) “and there were noises, thunderings, lightnings, and an earthquake” (Revelation 8:5).

There is so much more in the Bible that we don’t appreciate or understand because none of us study it the way we should. That is probably why we are told to “meditate on Your precepts” (Psalm 119:15), “meditate on Your wonderful works” (Psalm 119:27), “meditate on Your statutes” (Psalm 119:48), “meditate on Your word” (Psalm 119:148), “meditate on the glorious splendour of Your majesty” (Psalm 145:5), “meditate on His name” (Malachi 3:16), “meditate in it (The Book of the Law) day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it” (Joshua 1:8). “Meditate on these things; give yourself entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all” (1Timothy 4:15).

It’s a lot to take in and certainly something to think about 

Pastor Caroline - Sunday November 14, 2021 - Life of Good Deeds

Pastor Caroline - Wednesday November 10, 2021 - Peace

 

Peace

 

Today I want to give thanks to God for all the men and women who died in battle for our freedom. May they be remembered and honoured and may our hearts be grateful to the families who let their loved one / ones go to battle; believing one day our world would be a better place to live. My gratitude is also sent out to all who served, and survived the battle but still suffer the effects of what they experienced. God give them peace of mind I pray. On Remembrance Day let us all take time to remember, honour and appreciate the great the great country we live in thanks to those who gave in such an unselfish manner. Without those who served and those who continue to serve we could not and would not have the freedom and peace we enjoy every day in our free nation.

Let us remember—

                             Lest we forget.

 

                        Peace

Peace in the world — peace within ourselves. When we offer someone the piece of Christ do we realize the gift about which we speak? Peace is a gift, one of the most important gifts in our life. True peace comes from God.

 

When our world seems to be crumbling around us, we pray and a peace comes to us. A peace that goes beyond what we understand as we are told in Philippians chapter 4 verse 7.

This verse actually reads this way in my Good News Bible:

(7) And God‘s peace, which is far beyond human understanding, will keep your hearts and minds safe in union with Christ Jesus.

 

When something takes place in our life that causes us hurt or pain, we go to God bringing Him our emotions and we ask Him to direct us. We ask that He keep us from causing more hurt or pain because of our reaction. God does not want us to react but rather act in the likeness of Christ. Forgive, and ask for forgiveness.

 

When we give forgiveness or receive forgiveness we feel peace over us and we cannot humanly explain it fully. We just know that we know – we have peace! Thank you, Jesus.

 

When we turn our heart and mind to Christ it is amazing the strength we receive. The heaviness is lifted, giving us a feeling of being refreshed. We feel His peace which allows us to just let go and let God – lift us higher. Imagine truly understanding the union we have in Christ when we stay focused on Him.

 

Peace is something we all can have. When we accept Jesus as Lord and Saviour we accept the gift of salvation, the gift of knowing our sins are forgiven because of the completed work He did on the cross. Jesus purchased our salvation with His blood and giving His life on the old rugged cross; so that we may all be forgiven.

 

Let us always remember what Jesus did and be ever so grateful. Let us never forget how much He loves us. Let us accept His gift of peace. And let us forgive as He forgives us. Then we will understand peace in a new way.

 

May we all keep our hearts and minds safe in union with Christ Jesus.

Let there be peace shared among us; and may the peace of Christ be with you every day.

Dr. Barclay's Bible Study - The Book of Judges Part 9